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House panel questions DOE FY27 budget on nuclear expansion, grant reviews and Genesis mission
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Summary
At a House Energy and Water Subcommittee hearing, Secretary Chris Wright defended the Department of EnergyFY27 request, including plans to expand nuclear capacity and the Genesis AI-enabled research mission, while members pressed him over project terminations, withheld rebate funds and NNSA oversight.
Chair called the Energy and Water Subcommittee to order and introduced Secretary Chris Wright to discuss the Department of Energy's fiscal year 2027 budget request. Secretary Wright described the request as focused on "restoring mission" to DOE, highlighting grid reliability steps, more than 19 billion cubic feet per day in LNG export authorizations, and a proposal to increase National Nuclear Security Administration funding by roughly 29%.
The hearing featured opening statements from Representative Kaptur, who warned that the president's budget would eliminate the Weatherization Assistance Program, cut the Office of Critical Minerals by about $1.9 billion and reduce funding for the Office of Science and ARPA-E; and Representative DeLauro, who criticized what she described as broad nondefense cuts and warned of the effects on families and research programs.
Secretary Wright summarized administration priorities for the department and defended recent program reviews. "We reviewed roughly 2,200 projects," he said, describing a business-evaluation process that led to restructurings, cancellations and continuations. He also framed the Genesis mission as a large-scale effort to marshal the national labs, universities and industry around AI-enabled scientific challenges ranging from fusion to quantum computing and biomedical research.
Members used their rounds to press on several fault lines: the legal and procedural basis for project terminations, whether announcements reflected partisan selection, and the pace and oversight of NNSA construction projects, including plutonium pit production. Representative Kaptur and others raised energy affordability for households and pressed for clarity on when home energy rebate funds would be released to states and tribal governments; Representative Wasserman Schultz said DOE withheld more than $345,000,000 in rebate funds for Florida and asked for a timetable for release.
On nuclear issues, members pressed Secretary Wright for concrete timelines and reforms. Wright said the administration aims to produce 100 pits cumulatively during the term and to reach a sustained rate of 80 pits per year "as soon as 2030," while acknowledging management and oversight reforms are needed in NNSA projects.
Several members raised regional and project-specific issues: cleanup milestones at Hanford, infrastructure recapitalization at INL, selection of the next Bonneville Power Administration administrator, and the role of a Strategic Uranium Reserve and domestic milling/enrichment capacity. Wright repeatedly emphasized a preference for "all-of-the-above" energy development and said DOE will pursue permitting and NEPA procedural changes to speed projects where appropriate.
The secretary also committed to cooperating with an inspector general review of the project terminations and indicated DOE is willing to reengage applicants where the department may have misunderstood business plans. The hearing closed with routine housekeeping and a four-week deadline for submitting questions for the record.
